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In one year “Bad Ass Boss Lady” Sheletta Brundidge built the SHEletta Makes Me Laugh network with eight podcasts on her network! How did she do it? She did it through hustle, using her network, and learning everything she could.
“I want to make a million dollars Ed!” Sheletta Brundidge said with a smile near the end of her passionate discussion about how she had to make her own way during day 2 of the Make Real Money in Podcasting conference.
She was working at WCCO radio in Minnesota as the part-time overnight weekend producer and she talked to her bosses about diversity and amplifying diverse voices but nothing came of the discussions. When George Floyd happened the conversation opened up again and they offered her a weekend show with limited hours but that wasn’t enough for her ambitions.
Then one day she was watching the BET awards and inspiration struck. Tyler Perry gave an acceptance speech and he said “If you can’t find a seat at the table, build your own!” She was so inspired that she realized she wanted to make her own podcast and do her comedy and have a voice and give a voice to people who were marginalized.
Sheletta lives her life online and as soon as she got online and declared her ambitions her friends listened and said they couldn’t get on tv and no one would listen to them. She wanted to help them but she didn’t know what to do.
She said she didn’t have a dime and found the She Podcasts conference to help women in podcasting. They said if you can get to Atlanta and volunteer you’ll get free registration. She said the conference was a blueprint and they poured into her money with energy and inspiration and was full of knowledgeable women who wanted her to succeed
Then in short order, she had eight shows hosted by 11 African American subject experts on travel, workplace diversity, teen mental health, and autism awareness. They fashion themselves as a one-stop-shop for cultural relevance and creativity.
Ed asked her “How do we get more people of color in podcasting?” and Sheletta told him “we have to build platforms - we have to bring people on.”
Her tips for success are to do the work and learn everything you can while helping your friends along the way. One of her goals for having more money is to give more of it back to the podcasters in her network.
She also wasn’t afraid to move outside her circle of friends and contacted local companies to partner with because “they want to partner with someone who makes them look good.”
Sheletta says that conferences like the Make Real Money in Podcasting conference are important because people are lost and they don’t know which direction they’re going in and learning from experts and receiving expert advice helps new podcasters know that their voice matters and how to use it productively.
You can find her network at Shelettamakesmelaugh.com on Twitter @ShelettaIsFunny and by email at shelettab@gmail.com.